for it. Some of them cut the list down to three, while others proposed different schemes altogether. One faction affirmed a “First Cause” on the basis of the heavens’ motion, arguing that the celestial sphere moves out of longing and therefore must have something it seeks to resemble. Thus, the First Cause becomes nothing more than the goal required by the sphere: it moves so as to imitate that Cause, just as a follower keeps pace with his imam or an imitator models himself on his exemplar.

They even express it by saying, “like the beloved who sets his lover in motion.”

Aristotle’s own remarks on this are extant; I have quoted them word-for-word and commented on them elsewhere. He mentions it in the Lambda Treatise, the last segment of his philosophy and the culmination of his speculation. He also mentions this in Athūlūjiyā. It has not been established that the Lord is the originator of a celestial sphere